A key figure in the London Olympics and Gold Coast Commonwealth Games has been appointed to run Birmingham 2022 for the city council.

Neil Carney was head of games operations for Gold Coast and has also had major roles with a series of global sporting events over many years.

His new £120,000 a year project director role will be with Birmingham City Council rather than the 2022 organising committee and co-ordinate council events and planning for the Games over the next four years.

Key Commonwealth Games projects being delivered by the council include the 1,000-home athletes village at Perry Barr, upgrade of Alexander Stadium, development of Sprint rapid bus routes, a major arts festival and a business expo.

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As well as his work on the Gold Coast, his CV includes the 2015 European Games, London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games, as well as a Volvo Ocean Race, the Doha Asian Games 2006, and the Special Olympics World Summer Games in 2003.

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This is the first appointment of the council's new chief executive Dawn Baxendale, who took over at the start of April.

She said: “I’m delighted to welcome Neil to the team. It is a key role for Birmingham City Council, working with all our Commonwealth Games partners, and I am confident he will do a fantastic job as we continue on our journey towards 2022.

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COMMONWEALTH GAMES 2022

“It’s absolutely critical we get the Games right for the people of Birmingham. Once the 11 days of sporting action are complete in August 2022, we must ensure that all of the efforts that have gone into the event then help in the long term, by improving the standard of life in the city, attracting fresh inward investment and positioning the city positively on an international stage.

“We had a number of very strong candidates, but Neil’s breadth of experience shone through and we look forward to him getting into the role.”